Writing has consistently been an important form of communication in the history of civilization. It has undergone shifts as cultures around the world changed. An example of this is how over time, writing began in forms like papyrus and with the help of technology, transformed to how modern writing is today. The transformations in writing also play a part in individuals. After reading “Writing the Mind” by Bolter, it has expanded my perspective on the impact that writing has on shaping a  person into who they are today. The first few letters I wrote when I first began learning how to write is still considered writing, just like how I am currently typing sentences on a computer. It is now apparent that also my thought processes in writing have changed as I have grown throughout my life. When I first began learning how to write, I probably didn’t truly understand the importance of the letters I was tracing. However, I developed those skills and transformed my written form of language from letters to words and words to sentences. The difference between these changes is that I gained understanding and value for my writing, learning how to communicate my thoughts and ideas in another form of language. With the capability to read and write, people can interpret other perspectives in writing and compare it to their own. This deep analysis varies from person to person, depending on how they were raised or the culture that they grew up in. Their critical frame can be directly manifested into what they write, displaying the importance of writing in communicating and interpreting. Coming from an Asian American background, my culture would obviously be different than cultures around the world,  and I can portray this with my writing. This process of categorizing my thoughts and organizing them onto paper is very personal, almost to where I am what I write. Writing is very vulnerable because what someone spills onto paper is about the individual, including their culture and their upbringing. My grandparents and parents have dealt with war through much of their lives and that is a part of my background that I can write about and relate to with many other people. I find that there are many benefits of having writing because even though you can have language with out writing, it fosters analysis, editing, forwarding, and categorization, things that aren’t easy with verbal speaking.

Dear Mom and Dad, 

Growing up you always had this vision or path that you wanted me to follow that sometimes I couldn’t keep up with. Repeatedly, I was reminded that I had to do well in school, succeed in sports, and balance that with all the extra curriculars I had, but what happens if I couldn’t? Throughout highschool I struggled with trying to keep up with that perfect daughter you had in mind, but I always found myself falling short. I can recollect the numerous times you would remind me to do well on tests and get into a good college, but I never believed I could achieve those things. I beat myself up about all my failures to the point where the person I hated most was myself. I would ask myself that if I couldn’t even get close to reaching the high expectations you had, then why am I even here? I kept those feelings of resent bottled up from you guys because I didn’t even know how I could bring it up. There were times when we would be together and I would debate on whether to bring up how I was feeling, but I would always choose not to. I couldn’t even imagine myself talking about that with you, I mean, how could I tell you that your own daughter was depressed. I remember crying on my bed, feeling so defeated and defenseless and out of reach from you guys. I felt that you guys couldn’t be able to truly understand how I felt to even help the situation at all. I am everything but perfect, and that is something I didn’t want to admit to you because I felt it would disappoint you. Sorry I couldn’t be the perfect daughter, whatever that means. 

The first time I told you, mom, we were sitting on my bed and you asked me why I was crying. I remember telling you it was nothing, but I so badly wanted to jump into your arms and spill out everything that I was feeling, but it didn’t end up that way. After telling you I would have rather been dead then alive, you merely replied with, “Well just… don’t feel sad.” You warned me that if I go see a doctor that they would make me take pills for it. At that point I remember feeling completely alone and lost like I had no one else to talk to, even though I know that wasn’t your intention. I told you that what I’m feeling can’t be fixed that easily, that suicidal thoughts aren’t an emotion, but you continue to tell me to ignore what I’m feeling like it doesn’t exist. After that moment you never asked about those feelings again.

Coming from a highschool that had a population that was 90% Asian, I am familiar to the fact that there is a stigma around mental health in the Asian community. What I noticed about my classmates was that a lot of them felt the same way about their parents, struggling to conform to their high expectations, but had to deal with it in silence. Regularly, I observed my classmates beating themselves up about classes and sports that they didn’t even choose to do. Everyone knew that this was a common problem but since it was common, we felt that it was okay. Feelings of depression and failure were so normalized at my school that students would joke about how they want to “kill themself” if they did poorly. Mental health wasn’t really talked about at school either, and even if it was the students felt too embarrassed to talk about it openly. This environment of ignorance towards mental health continued for over half of my time at high school until sadly enough, one of my classmates took her own life. 

After this happened, I noticed that the school and my classmates began realizing the importance of discussing mental health. Mental health is becoming a more controversial topic, especially in Asian communities of my generation. A student run mental health panel at my school formed and staff at my school ensured that there were programs that could help the students who need it. I still had the same suicidal thoughts, but I began to feel less alone. I started reaching out to my close friends, telling them for the first time how I felt. Eventually, you found out again, but this time it was the school who told you. I was so terrified when my counselor told me that she was required to tell my parents about how I was feeling because I thought you guys would be angry. I felt ashamed. I didn’t want you guys to think that you couldn’t even help your own daughter. 

I was then scheduled to meet weekly with the school’s therapist. I didn’t believe that talking to a therapist would help at all, but I’m so glad that I was wrong. Eventually I was able to work on myself and my suicidal thoughts subsided.  

Later in the year we talked about those feelings again, but this time it was different. This time you understood that it was okay. This time you told me that failure is okay. This time you told me that I can talk to you. 

Looking back, I don’t believe that our situation could have gone any better. We were able to come out of it stronger because all of us were willing to change. Today, I am able to talk to you guys about more than I could have imagined and I feel comfortable talking to you about how I felt in the past. 

Love, 

Your Daughter

Still into today’s society, there are numerous cases of ongoing racism and injustice around the world. Even though so many people had to endure such inequalities, there have been too many times where the government was not as supportive as they should have been. In the letter from the Alabama Clergymen, they are trying to address the situation yet they still act as if the protestors are “outsiders”. If my community was experiencing injustice and discrimination for months, I would hope that the government would reach out to the public and stand for the lives affected by it. However, if the government sends a message similar to the Alabama Clergymen’s, I would be extremely disappointed if they call our citizens “outsiders” or anything similar to it. In my opinion, they should not act passive aggressive to people who are merely trying to earn rights that they deserve. In addition, to really solve a problem as such, it requires proactive choices and actions from both sides of the entire population. Without having at least a majority of the community on board, change will not be easy and there would not be as much progress. 

In response to the Alabama Clergymen, I completely agree with how Martin Luther King Jr handled the situation and believe he handled it extremely well despite being confined in the Birmingham city jail. He refutes their statements, gives many reasons why he is in Birmingham, and clearly states why he is qualified and reasonable to act as he is. In addition, it is very important that he questioned why the Clergymen would call their people “outsiders” when they are just as much of a citizen as them. If I were to respond to the government in my community who acted as ignorant as the Alabama Clergymen, I would also state the absurdity to call people “outsiders”. 

There is so much a reader can understand or realize about the author all from how and what they wrote. Much of how an author projects their thoughts and ideas depend on how they were brought up or their cultural experiences. In Chapter 2, this is called a critical frame. Everyone has a different critical frame because they have gone through life in their own path, tackling their personal obstacles in ways no one else would, creating billions of different perspectives. 

I would look at my upbringing through a psychological lens because the way I experienced life at home is significantly different to how my classmates today or colleagues in the future view their upbringing. This melting pot of different views on life are critical in language and literature. Authors utilize their critical frames to effectively persuade their audiences into their insight. 

Critical frames shape how people see things and their opinions on it. I believe that it is very important to reflect on one’s paths that they have taken in their life because it can say a lot about who they are or where they come from. The way I was raised by my parents is different to how other people my age were raised, and that alters my perception on things in my daily life. For example, both of my parents were born in Vietnam and immigrated to America with not much. Despite this, they were able to pay for their own tuition and land jobs in the future that would lead them to where they are today. Being born to parents like them has molded how I look at the world and what I do with my actions. In addition, This also has an impact on what I write, what message I am trying to convey, and the audience I am trying to connect with.